Batteries used on personal motorized vehicles, such as motorcycles, all-terrain vehicles, snowmobiles and personal watercraft, are often exposed to harsh environments that are detrimental to the electrical health of these batteries. It is important to the owners of such vehicles to maintain the health of the batteries so they are always ready to provide power for starting the vehicles. In most instances, vehicle owners first learn of battery problems when attempting to start their vehicles at times when it is inconvenient to deal with the problem. It is preferable to have advance warning that battery health is declining so the problem can be addressed at a time convenient to the owner.
Also, theft of batteries and theft of and other unauthorized use of personal motorized vehicles is an ongoing problem. Although security cables, chains, and locks have long been used in attempts to secure personal vehicles from theft, most such measures can be easily thwarted by a thief using a heavy-duty bolt cutter. Also, theft of batteries from such vehicles is usually not difficult.
What is needed is a monitoring device attached to or integrated into the battery of a personal vehicle that can detect and report (1) when the battery health is diminishing, (2) when there is unauthorized movement of the battery, thereby indicating either theft of the battery or unauthorized movement of the vehicle, and (3) the location of the battery after a theft or unauthorized movement event.